N7 Naas Road

Bagenal

Why oh why do drivers insist on driving in the middle lane of the Naas road (N7) between Naas and Newlands Cross even though the inside lane is empty? Downright selfish in my opinion because faster moving traffic is forced into the outside lane in order to pass them. Views please, agree or disagree.

Danno

Agreed!

Amtmann

It's mostly ignorance. They don't know the rules of the road and they don't intuit that they are decreasing the road's capacity.

There's an urban myth out there that the 'middle lane is safest'.

hi5

People are like sheep,they do what everyone else does.
If no one uses the left lane,then they won't either.

antoobrien

I'm not supporting them, but when it's busy it can be hard to get out of the leftmost lane. This causes problems at junctions where vehicles taking the exits slow down and where vehicles are trying to move onto the carriageway (some of the on slips are very short and it's hard get up to speed). So vehicles stay in the middle lane in order to keep their place on the road.

There's also the misconception that the middle & right lanes are fast & faster lanes - so the thinking is that you shouldn't be there if you're traveling at or near the speed limit. This has recently been re-enforced by ignorant local authorities such as Westmeath Co Co who have repeatedly indicated that the the fast lane will be closed intermittently during the upgrade works on the Athlone DC.

Aidan1

It's not just the N7, the M50 and N6 are just as bad. The reason for it is a mix of ignorance and fear (or excessive caution anyways). A lot of people find driving on DC/Motorways stressful, and they particularly dislike changing lanes - and all the more so in traffic and when trucks are around. So, by sticking to the middle lane, they feel that they can avoid changing lanes pretty much entirely. The fact that in the past there was a history of unsigned lane drops on DCs in Ireland probably doesn't help.

The ignorance thing is mainly because people just don't know that they're supposed to use the left lane (and glaring at them doesn't help, I've tried). Large stretches of DC (and particularly three lane) were rare in Ireland until fairly recently. The subject wasn't covered in the driving test, and relatively few people have driven abroad, so people just don't know.

The only solution is a long term education and training campaign, including banners on overpasses (I suggest something like 'In Ireland we drive on the LEFT!").

road_high

It was shocking this morning altogether. Constant slowing up, hard braking (dangerously so); it must have taken at least half an hour from where the M9 joins M7 to Newlands Cross. First sign of a drop of rain and this road turns into a nightmare. A three lane upgrade is badly needed from M9 junction to Naas. Am glad I don't drive it every morning, it's quite stressful having to drive like that.
Also, I think some educational signage might help for all the "Driving Miss Daisies" that haven't a bloody clue and hog up the middle lane constanly. Emphasise I said "might" :rolleyes:

celticbest

Cruising in Lane 2 also being discussed in this thread, http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056391165&page=2